In 2011, Index Ventures came full circle. The venture-capital firm started in Geneva in 1996, to "take the Silicon Valley mindset to Europe", according to partner Saul Klein. Five years later it opened a London office and backed some of the most successful companies in European tech: Skype, MySQL, Betfair, ASOS and LOVEFiLM, to name a few. Last year, it opened a San Francisco office -- to bring a European mindset to the Valley. "We believe in acting as a bridge between the most talented entrepreneurs on our side and connecting them directly into the Bay Area," says Klein.
Index has helped newer companies such as Moo and Playfish to establish a US presence. But it's also backing firms from the Valley and New York: last year it invested in Dropbox, Etsy and Flipboard. In 2011, it raised a €500 million (£408 million) fund and a €150 million life-science vehicle, backed by pharmaceutical giants GSK and Johnson & Johnson, and had 15 exits. London, though, remains the "heartbeat" of Index: current companies include EDITD, Mind Candy, MOO, onefinestay and Songkick. The secret to the company's productivity (it made 48 new investments in 2011 alone)? Its 29 investors: "You can't do all of that unless you work as a team," Klein says. "That's the core ethos: this is a team game -- this is total football."